A fair amount of disclosures have been put forward in recent years, seeking to develop a foldable/collapsible structure primarily for use as an animal shelter. More specifically, a number of pet houses and enclosures have been proposed with the purpose of providing a sleeping area for a pet and for confining a pet, when necessary, for example, when traveling. However, these structures have all tended to be bulky, of relatively high weight, difficult to move from one location to another, and more importantly, not sufficiently foldable/collapsible for ease of storage and transport. Such prior art designs also have not considered the development of a structure that provides appropriate thermal insulation, to thereby provide the pet with comfortable shelter. In short, to date, existing dog houses have been: 1. difficult to construct; 2. take up valuable space in distribution and at retail outlets; 3. are difficult to transport for both the distributor and retailer; 4. are difficult for consumers to transport home or to different locations; and 5. are difficult for consumers to store when not in use.
For example, one early attempt at producing a collapsible animal cage is reported in U.S. Pat. No. 3,896,766, which discloses a collapsible animal cage formed of rectilinear welded wire fabric. The cage is said to have a front and rear rectangular end wall structure movable between an erected position and a folded position overlying a litter tray on the bottom of the cage, side wall structures intermediately hinged between their tops and bottoms and foldable over the end wall structures, and a top hingedly secured to the top of the side walls therein.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,637 discloses what is termed a “container” to house or carry small household pets, that may be quickly and manually formed between an erected use mode and a flat folded storage mode. The container is of a gable roofed house configuration in its erected mode and comprises an interconnected structure formed by hingeably related rigid planar elements that occupy a relatively small volume in the folded storage mode. Handles carried by the roof provide aid in manual carriage, and releasable fasteners maintain either an erected or storage mode, and en end wall provides a selectively latchable door.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,116 discloses a collapsible A-frame house providing a common site for a cat to rest, exercise and play comprised of a roof of carpet-like material including two integral roof panels with their bottom edges connected to opposing edges of a floor panel also of a carpet-like material. Stiffening panels are affixed onto the backside of the roof panels. A cord with two ends slidably passes through the peak into the house, with cat amusement objects connected to each end. The cord additionally provides a manual handle for lifting the house. Collapsing the house for storage or transport, the house is initially lifted by the cord adjacent the peak. The flexible nature of the floor panels permits an outward folding or buckling of the floor along its longitudinal centerline to thereby completely collapse the house into a folded condition.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,520,758 discloses an animal house which is particularly adaptable for use with cats. The house is formed of an elongated base adapted to stand substantially vertical and a platform at the upper end of the house to form an animal perch. The base is formed of a single piece of self-supporting material with appropriate fold lines being provided by either areas of weakening or by rigid material at the location of the fold lines or by appropriate hinges to permit folding. The base can be formed of three separate panels folded into a three-sided figure of triangular cross section.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,096 discloses a curvilinear, four-sided pyramidal container for housing and carriage of small household pets. The container provides a flexible fabric cover which defines optionally coverable mesh windows and an optionally coverable openable access door structure. The container carries a rigid bottom insert and is supported by a rod frame having a square, releasably interconnected bottom element formed of four interconnected semi-rigid rods and two arched, resiliently deformable support rods extending upwardly between opposed corners of the structure, all said rods carried in loops defined on the inner surface of the cover. The support rods are selectively removable to allow assembly and collapse of the structure for storage.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,121,710 discloses a collapsible doghouse to be used indoors or outdoors, to provide a comfortable and easy to clean place for a dog to rest or seek shade. The doghouse includes elongated side walls, a pair of distal walls, one of which includes an arched entranceway and another of which includes a cutout drainage slot, a roof portion, and a weightable base portion, all of which are securely, yet easily removably connected, and are formed of a substantially solid, yet flexible, water repellent plastic which will facilitate easy cleaning and drainage, and lightweight transportation.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,335,618 discloses a collapsible animal enclosure comprising a house unit with spaced side walls and a roof of pliable material, and opposite ends forming an enclosed area for housing an animal. Support bows extend transversely across the sidewalls and roof for holding the sidewalls and roof in an open, spread apart condition. The house unit can be collapsed between a fully erect condition and a collapsed condition in which the ends are pushed inwardly towards one another, collapsing a pliable material between the ends in an accordion-folded manner.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,425,681 discloses an animal house, including a cap, a base, four posts and four walls secured together. Both the cap and base include a groove formed in the inner peripheral portion, and the posts each include two slots for engaging with the edges of the walls so as to solidly secure the walls in place. The animal house may be folded into a compact configuration.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,465,686 discloses a disposable, collapsible pet house foldable from a unitary blank of material received in a flat state, the house being foldable from the blank between a collapsed state for shipping, storage and disposal and an enclosed, erect state for use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,454 discloses a collapsible structure having front and back ends with front and back support members including a single central support member to pass in direct line along the cover means and thus support the entire structure at roughly the center of the cover means. The item may be sewn and easily manufactured in a fashion so that upon being collapsed it occupies the smallest possible volume and has no overlapping support members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,626,098 discloses a collapsible cage for dogs or rabbits comprising a rectangular base, fold-down end walls and folding side walls and a roof. The walls and roof are made of metal grids. The end walls fold down onto the base one over the other. The sidewalls fold in the middle and are hinged at the top to opposite edges of the roof allowing the sidewalls and roof to collapse onto the base over the end walls. The base has a pull out tray and a pan and an access door is provided in one of the end walls. Releasable clips are provided to hold the walls and roof together in an elevated position of the structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,727,502 discloses a collapsible pet home having a base, side walls, end walls and a roof which can be converted into an exercise pen for the pet by folding the end walls down onto the base, setting the base on end, and using the base, side walls and roof to form peripheral walls of the exercise pen. The entire structure is said to fold down into a compact package.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,669,331 discloses a pet housing expandable to hold a pet and collapsible to suitcase size for manual transport including a pair of platforms and first and second pairs of spaced walls. The walls are pivotally attached at opposite ends of the platform and are hinged at intermediate positions for collapse and expansion.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,752,470 discloses a collapsible system which can be used for portable pet houses, as well as for emergency housing in ties of disaster. When using this system, the structure will collapse by pushing in the sides from the middle, and by letting the front and back fold onto each other.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,769,028 discloses a pet carrier including a main and insert unit. The main unit defines a carrying space having a closed bottom and four sides, one of which has an opening therethrough large enough to permit an animal to enter the space through the opening. The insert unit has a closed top, four sides, and an open bottom. After the animal has entered the main unit, the insert unit is lowered down into the main unit to close off the side opening. Then a foldable top closure for the main unit is folded to secure the carrier and form a handle structure for carrying the carrier. Both units are foldable and are structured to provide an enhanced strength carrier.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,006,713 discloses a collapsible dog house with two opposite side walls, a front wall, a rear wall, a roof and a floor which are separable components, preferably made of marine plywood. The floor and roof are provided with rectangular skirts. The sidewalls are notched and grooved to interfit with the skirts and front and rear walls. Interlocking means are provided on the two skirts so that when the skirts are in confronting abutment they define the perimeter of a case whose sides are the roof and floor of the dog house.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,109,427 discloses a foldable structure considered to be primarily useful as a doghouse. The structure is foldable between an expanded configuration in which parallel sidewalls are connected by a top, a bottom and parallel ends and a folded configuration in which the side walls are adjacent to one another. In order to achieve a folding action, the top, bottom and the ends each consists of a set of two parts. The parts of each of these sets extend beyond the sidewalls. A first group of hinges are used to pivotally connect the parts of each of the sets to the sidewalls. The second group of hinges are employed to connect the parts of each set midway between the sidewalls.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,195,593 discloses a portable pet-house which defines an A-frame, the roof panel of which are pivoted at the top such that they are collapsible into a generally planar, carrying mode, preferably being floor and end wall members carried internally between the roof panels when the unit is in its portable mode.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,467,572 discloses a collapsible dwelling for animals, including a plurality of elements hingedly joined with each other which when in assembled relationship, cooperatively define an enclosure suitable for pets. All elements are hinged strategically since the elements can be partially disassembled and he aggregate parts stacked one upon the other, for inclusion within a container having a length and width no greater than that of the largest elements.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,169,428 discloses a sleeping bag for pets formed from a multiple ply padded sheet of deeply quilted material which is normally folded along its central portion with opposite halves in overlying relationship to form lower and upper layers and with the edge portions of each half in alignment with each other.
PCT Application No. WO 97/47185 discloses a house for feeding small animals, especially dogs or cats made of a folded section of cardboard or other foldable material with an essentially square lower section forming a bottom and side walls and a roof shaped upper section, where the lower section has an access aperture for the animal. The lower and upper sections are made in one piece from a folded section, where the upper section can be fitted on and secure the lower section where there is t least one removable inlay of corrugated cardboard or another absorbent material covering the bottom.
European Patent 0742 999B1 discloses an animal shelter, comprising a box having at least one strip curtain made of elastic material in front of an entrance to the box interior, characterized in that the strips are fastened in a releasable and in particular too-free, exchangeable manner in a clamp mounting which is fastened to the box.
Finally, as it relates to background art concerning foldable/collapsible structures, European Patent Application 0 3667 626 A1 discloses a portable folding shelter for domestic animals. The shelter comprises a pair of sidewalls articulated at the top edges thereof to a respective sloping element in turn articulated to a central element, a rear and a front apertured wall articulated to the side edges of the sidewalls and each foldable along a middle vertical line, the roof of the shelter being provided with a withdrawing holding handle.
Turning to a background consideration relating to pet carriers, it is noted that a variety of pet carriers have been also been reported in the prior art, all aimed in one form or another to facilitate pet transportation. Specifically, pet carriers are commonly used by pet owners for carrying their pets on trips or as a means for containing the pets when the pets are shipped from one point to another. Pet carriers also commonly double as sleeping quarters for the pet as the owner may contain the pet overnight to prevent the pet from wandering and potentially damaging the home or hotel room in which the owner is occupying.
There are, however, some shortcomings inherent to common pet carriers. During transport, the pet will require food and water and periodically will need to relieve its bodily functions. In addition, the food and water itself, which are placed in the pet carrier, may be overturned by the pet or by carrier movement during transportation. Accordingly, in either case, the pet carriers to date have been inadequate in their ability to efficiently deal with such problems and to provide the pet with a stable hygienic environment.
For example, some common pet carriers currently available have been advertised in the “R.C. Steele Wholesale Pet Supply Catalog”, Brockport, N.Y., which illustrates “Doskocil Kennels” as a lightweight, portable kennel designed for safe transportation. Also shown is the “Vari-Kennel” design that contains what is described as a “dial latch system” for ease of assembly. However, neither of these designs display any aspect of how to preserve a sanitary condition in the specific carrier should the animal be forced to relieve itself.
More specifically, reviewing the patent literature as it applies to pet carriers begins with U.S. Pat. No. 5,769,028, entitled “Pet Carrier” which discloses a carrier including a main unit and an insert unit. The main unit defines a carrying space having a closed bottom and four sides, one of which has an opening therethrough large enough to permit an animal to enter the space through the opening, and the insert unit has a closed top, four sides, and an open bottom. After the animal has entered the main unit, the insert unit is lowered down into the main unit to close off the side opening. Then a foldable top closure for the main unit is folded to secure the carrier and form a handle structure for carrying the carrier. Both units are foldable and are structured to provide an enhanced strength carrier.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,503,107 entitled “Pet Carrier” discloses a container for manually transporting a pet having a litter box, food container and water container therein and sliding doors accessible from the exterior of the container for selectively closing the litter box, food container and water container to prevent inadvertent spillage. The container may also include a single compartment or two detachably connected compartments in order that a liter box compartment may be selectively separated from a food and water compartment. Detachable handles are provided in order that each separate compartment of the dual compartment embodiment may be carried separately or as a unified compartment.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,392, entitled “Pet Carrier” discloses a corrugated plastic pet carrier with two side panels. A side panel fold line extends between the base panel and each side panel. In addition, a diagonal fold line is said to extend from each corner of the base panel to a first median fold line for collapsing the base panel, side panels and end panels inwardly for collapsing the container from an erect position to a collapsed, generally flat position, and back to an erect position.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,671,698 entitled “Pet Carrier” discloses a pet housing having a rigid bottom panel enclosed in a bottom cover which is attached to a plastic mesh which is shaped to form the pet carrier sides and top. The plastic mesh is attached to inverted U shaped rigid frame members which hold the shape of the sides and top as well as provide structural support to protect the pet being transported. The pet carrier has a rear end panel and door of plastic mesh to complete the enclosure. There is a provision for a tray and absorbent pad in the bottom of the pet carrier for hygiene as well as a cover to protect the pet from the environment.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,133,294, entitled “Pet Carrier for Vehicles” discloses a pet carrier for use in a vehicle comprising a platform sized to generally fit on the passenger seat. Front, rear and side panels are pivotally connected to the platform for movement between generally horizontal positions and upright positions wherein they form a pet enclosure upstanding from the platform.
Attention is directed to U.S. Pat. No. 5,715,772 entitled “Pet Carrier Absorbent Pad” which discloses an absorbent pad designed to be used with pet carriers to absorb liquids that may be present. Specifically, the pad is said to contain an absorbent layer having first and second sides, a first single direction moisture conveyor positioned proximate to at least one side of the absorbent layer for allowing moisture to pass toward the absorbent layer and for resisting passage of moisture out of said absorbent layer. A second single direction moisture conveyor is positioned proximate to said second side of said absorbent layer, wherein the first and second direction moisture conveyors are oriented about said absorbent layer so that moisture travels across said moisture conveyors only toward said absorbent layer.
Finally, as it relates to background art concerning pet carriers, attention is also directed to U.S. Pat. No. 4,484,540 entitled, “Collapsible, Portable Domestic Pet Cage”, which discloses a collapsible, portable domestic pet cage for carrying with a pet keeper such domestic pets as dogs, cats and the like, wherein bent portions of the cage can be readily constructed using any connection means and fixing means, and when collapsed dimensionally in small form, the whole circumferential walls of the cage is accomodated between vertical walls of a ceiling plate and erected walls of a receptacle plate or dish so as to be made dimensionally in a small size.
Turning next to a background consideration relating to portable storage designs for the purpose of, e.g., providing the consumer a convenient method to store and transport perishable goods, the following summary is provided.
First, U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,228 discloses a collapsible cooler having four side walls hingedly attached to a bottom panel. Each of the four side walls is composed of two trapezoidal subassemblies hingedly connected about a center longitudinal axis, such that the two subassemblies meet along the shorter edge of the trapezoid. The side walls further comprises flexible corner panels. The top of the container comprises a lid which is hingedly attached to the long side of one of the upper side wall subassemblies. This construction allows the container to be collapsed downward by pushing on the top panel. Similarly, the container is expanded by pulling up on a strap which is attached to two opposing upper side wall subassemblies. The cooler further contains sealed modules of “blue ice”, which is a heat transfer material composed of water and glycol, or a similar heat transfer material, contained within the panels of the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,622,276 discloses a collapsible container/cooler which has four side walls pivotally connected to a bottom panel in such a manner that the four walls can pivot inward to lie flat on one another in a manner parallel to the bottom panel. The container further comprises an insulated liner, which is permanently attached to two opposing walls and detachably connected to the remaining two walls, and an insulated, removable lid. The container is structurally supported by snaps which serve to lock the side walls in position. When these snaps are engaged they constrain the movement of the side-walls, thereby creating a rigid, right rectangular container.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,091,852 discloses an inflatable box composed of six inflatable panels integrally connected so as to form a rectangular box having a top, bottom, first and second end, and first and second side. The joint between each of the panels consists of a defined fold line. Additionally, integral with, and therefore connecting adjacent edges of adjacent end and side panels, is a rectangular web of non-inflatable material such that when the box is assembled, with the sides and ends normal to the bottom panel, the two webs on each end of the bottom panel will fold across the outside of the end panels so as to provide structural support for the assembled box and therein complete the box in a fluid-tight configuration. The insulating character of the assembled box derives from the air-pockets of the inflated panels.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,050,766 discloses a collapsible ice chest made from corrugated paper. The container is constructed from a rectangular sheet that is folded to create a bottom panel and four side walls with gusset panels which fold over onto the sides, such that the container created is free from any leaks. The ice chest is supplied to the consumer with the bottom pre-filled with ice and the majority of the vertical expanse of the side walls folded down parallel to the bottom panel thereby creating a covered ice tray of relatively low profile and small volume. The ice chest is further supplied with a lid that telescopes onto the container, even when folded into the ice tray configuration in the described manner. At time of use, the container is removed from cold storage, and the side walls are folded into a vertical configuration, therein creating a ready to use ice chest. This ice chest is intended to be cheap and largely disposable, however it is disclosed that after being used the container can be emptied and folded back into its initial configuration, thereby greatly reducing its size, and reused simply by re-expanding the side walls in the previously described manner.
Accordingly, upon extensive review of all the prior art noted above, it is first apparent that a completely foldable, collapsible structure, suitable as a shelter for a pet, comprised of lightweight material having excellent thermal insulating features and ease of assembly/disassembly, remains generally unavailable. Therefore, it is a first object to overcome the disadvantages of the various structures noted above, and prepare a foldable, collapsible structure which is more economical to manufacture and purchase, and which can readily be converted into a compact condition for ease of storage and/or transport and also presents itself in an attractive or classic-looking doghouse design when fully deployed. Yet another object of this invention is to provide a foldable/collapsible structure suitable for a pet which simple to set up, take down and convert from one use to another.
Furthermore, with respect to the extensive review of the prior art related to pet carriers, although certain pet carrier designs have been disclosed which are, as noted, collapsible, and although absorbent pads of certain construction are known, there remains an on-going demand for a pet carrier design which more efficiently deals with liquid waste build-up, and which also collapses into a substantially flat configuration for ease of storage/transportation when not in use. Stated another way, pet carriers to date have shown themselves to be relatively bulky and heavy thereby failing to provide a simple, lightweight and portable pet carrier which provides both comfort and good hygiene for the pet, and also provides a safe/sturdy structure for protection during transport.
Accordingly, it is also a general object of this invention to provide a pet carrier that is conveniently collapsible for storage, and which provides both the pet and the pet owner with a advantageous method to deal with liquid animal waste which occurs in the carrier over extended periods of time.
More specifically, it is also an object of this invention to provide a pet carrier design that allows for ease of cleaning of animal waste, and which isolates the animal from the liquid waste when the pet is forced to remain in the carrier after relieving itself. Furthermore, it is also an object of this invention to provide a more humane method of transporting pets. That is, it is an object of the invention herein to provide a pet carrier construction wherein the pet can be provided with essential liquid nourishment when in transport without fear of the pet becoming exposed to unsanitary and unhealthy conditions due to the evolution of a soiled environment.
Finally, and once again, as can be seen from the above review of the prior art, while various attempts have been made to provide consumer products such as a break-apart cooler, there remains an on-going need to improve upon such designs in order to provide a more durable yet collapsible configuration, that readily converts from a portable cooler mode to storage mode with minimal hand operation.
It is therefore also an additional object of this invention to provide such a new and improved collapsible cooler design which is of the aforementioned durable and reliable construction, and which also provides a waterproof enclosure for ice cooling, and makes use of living type hinge structure along with a strategic placement of hinge points in the cooler walls for collapsibility and ease of transport. In addition, it is also an object of this invention to provide a portable and collapsible structure that would be suitable, for example, to restrict access to consumer waste containers and the like, and which would readily provide the consumer with a convenient, sanitary, and cosmetically pleasing alternative for storing waste containers.